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Rhum Clément is aged at Habitation Clément in Le François
Rhum Clément is made from fresh cane juice under the AOC Martinique and aged at Habitation Clément in Le François. The estate holds the cellars, the bottling plant and gardens open to visitors. Yves and Bernard Hayot took the company over in 1986.
Rhum Clément at a glance, from Rhum Clément’s own pages and Spiribam
Founded
- Rhum Clément
- Homère Clément bought the Acajou estate in 1887; distillery built in 1917; brand named Clément in 1944
Location
- Rhum Clément
- Habitation Clément, Le François, Martinique
Owner
- Rhum Clément
- Groupe Bernard Hayot, since 1986
Raw material
- Rhum Clément
- Fresh cane juice
Stills
- Rhum Clément
- A continuous column, giving a distillate of 71% ABV
Casks
- Rhum Clément
- Ex-bourbon, new American and new French oak
Appellation
- Rhum Clément
- AOC Martinique Rhum Agricole
Signature bottlings
- Rhum Clément
- Blanc, Canne Bleue, VSOP, XO
| Feature | Rhum Clément |
|---|---|
| Founded | Homère Clément bought the Acajou estate in 1887; distillery built in 1917; brand named Clément in 1944 |
| Location | Habitation Clément, Le François, Martinique |
| Owner | Groupe Bernard Hayot, since 1986 |
| Raw material | Fresh cane juice |
| Stills | A continuous column, giving a distillate of 71% ABV |
| Casks | Ex-bourbon, new American and new French oak |
| Appellation | AOC Martinique Rhum Agricole |
| Signature bottlings | Blanc, Canne Bleue, VSOP, XO |
The estate no longer distils: its gardens were laid out in 1992 on the site of the former distillery, and Clément’s own pages do not say where the rhum is now distilled. Rhum JM belongs to the same group.
A doctor bought the estate in 1887 and turned it to cane juice
Homère Clément was born in La Trinité in 1852, studied medicine in Paris and came home in 1885. In 1887 he bought the Acajou estate at auction, after its owner had closed the sugar mill and gone bankrupt. He had become mayor of Le François in 1886.
His son Charles took over in 1923, renamed the brand Clément in 1944 and built its first ageing cellar. Charles’s sons ran the business from 1973. Yves and Bernard Hayot bought it in 1986, the estate opened to the public in 1988, and the house became a historic monument in 1996, the year the AOC began.
Clément is distilled from fresh juice and aged in American oak
Clément says its cane juice ferments for 24 to 36 hours, within the appellation’s limit of 120, and that the column gives a distillate of 71% ABV.
The rhum goes into cask at about 64%
White rhum rests in stainless steel for six to eight months, and aged rhum spends at least three years in oak. The XO is aged in ex-bourbon barrels with new American ones, and the 10 Years in ex-bourbon with new French barrels. The six cellars at the Habitation hold more than 12,000 barrels, and Julien Thimon has been cellar master since 2021.
The appellation sets a bottling strength of at least 40% ABV.
The white rhum tastes of cane and the old rhums of oak
White Clément tastes of the fresh cane, as all agricole does: cut grass, cane sap and white pepper, dry on the finish. The aged rhums add the vanilla and spice of American oak, and French oak adds a drier grip.
The range follows the appellation’s age grades
Clément’s grades and the appellation minimums, from Rhum Clément’s own pages and the AOC specification
Blanc
- AOC minimum
- Six weeks’ rest
- Strength
- 40%, 50% or 55% ABV
Canne Bleue
- AOC minimum
- Six weeks’ rest; a dated vintage
- Strength
- 50% ABV
VO
- AOC minimum
- Three years in oak
- Strength
- 40% ABV
VSOP
- AOC minimum
- Four years in oak
- Strength
- 40% ABV
XO
- AOC minimum
- Six years in oak
- Strength
- 42% ABV
10 and 15 Years
- AOC minimum
- Age stated on the label
- Strength
- 42% ABV
| Bottling | AOC minimum | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| Blanc | Six weeks’ rest | 40%, 50% or 55% ABV |
| Canne Bleue | Six weeks’ rest; a dated vintage | 50% ABV |
| VO | Three years in oak | 40% ABV |
| VSOP | Four years in oak | 40% ABV |
| XO | Six years in oak | 42% ABV |
| 10 and 15 Years | Age stated on the label | 42% ABV |
Canne Bleue is a white rhum named for the blue cane variety it is made from, released as a dated vintage each year since 2001. Above the core sit vintages, special batches and a Select Barrel range, and the house also makes Créole Shrubb, an orange liqueur.
The white rhum belongs in a Ti’ Punch
The Ti’ Punch is built for the white rhum: 60ml of rhum agricole blanc and 10ml of cane syrup over a disc of lime. Clément Blanc at 50% or Canne Bleue both fit.
A white agricole makes a drier, grassier Daiquiri.
Keep the XO and the age-stated rhums for a glass on their own.
The facts come from the producer and the trade press
The dates and the range are from Rhum Clément’s history and its range.
The fermentation, distillation, cellar master and ageing are from Rhum Clément’s know-how and its listings for the XO, 10 Years and Canne Bleue.
The appellation rules are from the AOC Rhum de la Martinique specification, approved by French Decree No 2014-1542; Rum, rhum or ron sets them out.
Jerry Can Spirits is an independent company: we are not affiliated with Rhum Clément, and we do not act for or on behalf of them. This page is our own account, drawn from the sources it lists.